Typically, compressed gas cylinders are manually carried by grasping the valve assembly and/or the canister itself. However, these cylindrical containers are generally large and awkward and as such, transportation of the canisters in this fashion limits both the distance and the number of cylinders that can be safely transported by a person. Moreover, the resulting stresses on the carriers arms, and especially the fingers, significantly limits the distance over which a person can carry such a canister. In addition, if to much stress is applied to the valve assembly during transportation, the cylinder itself may be damaged. As such, transportation of these compressed gas cylinders frequently results in personal injury and/or damage to the gas cylinder itself. Further yet, it is not uncommon for injury to occur to people or property that are in proximity to these cylinders, due to the difficulty of controlling the cylinder during transportation.
Heretofore, prior art devices for carrying compressed gas cylinders have typically been large, and therefore cumbersome to use. Additionally, many of these prior art devices have required the use of some form of strap or strapping, which is mounted or otherwise attached to the compressed gas cylinder, in order to utilize the carrier. As such, these prior art devices make the attachment of these carrying tools cumbersome and time-consuming.
Accordingly, a need exists for an improved compressed gas cylinder carrier which is, among other things, easy-to-use, has the ability to be installed and removed quickly, and makes the transportation of the these compressed gas cylinders safe, easy, and secure, while allowing these cylinders to be transported with less effort.